Lester Maddox

Lester Garfield Maddox, Sr.

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Former Governor of Georgia
From: January 11, 1967 – January 12, 1971

Lieutenant | George T. Smith
Predecessor | Carl Sanders
Successor | Jimmy Carter
7th Lieutenant Governor of Georgia
From: January 12, 1971 – January 14, 1975
Predecessor | George T. Smith
Successor | Zell Miller
Information

Party  | Democrat

Spouse(s)  | Hattie Virginia Cox

Religion  | Southern Baptist

"Lester Maddox (pointing gun) and his son (waving axe handle) try to prevent Black protester from entering his Pickrick restaurant, this week 1964—Maddox was elected Governor of Georgia 1966" - Historian Michael Beschloss.[1]

Another photo of Governor Lester Maddox

Lester Garfield Maddox, Sr. (September 30, 1915 - June 25, 2003), was the 75th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia for the single term from January 11, 1967, to January 12, 1971. A lifelong Democrat, he championed segregation, and like contemporary liberals, advocated the threat and use of violence to achieve political ends.[2] He later served on the same ticket with Jimmy Carter's as Lieutenant Governor.

Maddox was a restaurant owner who famously kept a baseball bat in an umbrella stand at the door of his business to chase away Blacks who tried to enter. The publicity he received for these actions in 1964 qualified him for and got him elected Democrat governor of Georgia two years later in 1966. In 1968, between the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King and nomination of Vice President Hubert Humphrey who did not run in any primary or caucus election, Maddox tossed his hat into the ring as a Democrat presidential candidate,[3] and received glowing MSM national attention.

After Humphrey's nomination, Maddox supported Alabama Democrat former Governor George Wallace as the nominee of the former American Independent Party. Maddox's refusal to support Humphrey cost him to support among some Georgia Democrats, particularly in his native city of Atlanta, and paved the way for the election of Jimmy Carter in 1970. Maddox stepped down to become Lieutenant Governor. Maddox ran for president against Carter, whom he personally disliked, in 1976 as the nominee of the American Independent Party.

## See also[edit]

* Theodore Bilbo
* Jimmie Davis
* Orval Faubus
* George Wallace

## References[edit]

1. ↑ https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1278395843322789889
2. ↑ http://www.nga.org/portal/site/nga/menuitem.29fab9fb4add37305ddcbeeb501010a0/?vgnextoid=34f8224971c81010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD&vgnextchannel=e449a0ca9e3f1010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD
3. ↑ https://sites.google.com/site/maddoxfamilywebsite/maddox-famous/gov-lester-maddox